The Walkabouts - Train Leaves At Eight

The Walkabouts - Train Leaves At Eight

Tracklist & credits
discogs here

Vocals – Carla Torgerson, Chris Eckman
Bass – Joe Skyward
Drums – Brian Young
Guitar – Carla Torgerson, Chris Eckman
Harmonium – Chris Eckman
Melodica – Carla Torgerson
Organ – Glenn Slater
Percussion – Brian Young
Piano – Carla Torgerson, Chris Eckman, Glenn Slater
Synthesizer – Glenn Slater
Producer – Kevin Suggs

Take it HERE  [flac 403MB]

Review by Chris Nickson [allmusic]

The Walkabouts' second collection of covers comes with a quite definite theme, a musical tour of Europe, ranging from Greece in the South all the way up to Norway. And it's most definitely a journey, one which suits the darker, more introspective, and very literate nature of this Seattle band. But the ground covered is more than geographic; not many bands could move from Greek icon Mikis Theodorakis to Krautrockers Neu! on the same record. But the Walkabouts, whose career has largely happened in Europe, handle it with aplomb, throwing up plenty of changes in arrangements and working hard to penetrate to the core of a song, even the enigmatic "Solex in a Slipshod Style," on the face of it an odd choice, coming from Dutch sampling queen Solex. A few of the writers might be familiar to Americans, like Jacques Brel and Scott Walker, but the majority of the names will be unknown -- a good thing, since the music can be judged on the interpretation, not the original version. A few famous friends, like R.E.M.'s Peter Buck and Los Lobos sax man Steve Berlin add contributions, but it's the band who make it special, with Carla Torgerson's velvety voice caressing the lyrics while Chris Eckman worries his way into others. It might not be the most relaxing journey on offer, but it's one of the most rewarding, a night train across a Europe, not only through the countries, but also the hearts, minds, and souls.

* * * * * * *

¨Η πως η αγάπη των Walkabouts για την Ευρωπαϊκή κουλτούρα - και τους ανθρώπους βεβαίως - μετουσιώνεται σε ένα cd... Πάντα η Ευρώπη τους χάριζε αυτό που η μαμά πατρίδα φαινόταν ανίκανη να παραδεχτεί, και αυτοί κατά κάποιο τρόπο με αυτό το cd επιστρέφουν πίσω...Με όλη τους την αγάπη και απεριόριστο σεβασμό. Δίσκος πολυεπίπεδος, βάλσαμο για την ψυχή.

The Walkabouts : New West Motel 1993

top lp cover , down cd cover

Despite their background (punk), geography (Seattle), and label affiliation (Sub Pop), the Walkabouts were anything but a grunge band; dark, haunting, and elegiac, their work instead sprung forth from the storytelling traditions of American roots music and the kinetic excitement of rock & roll. The Walkabouts were formed in 1984 by Chris Eckman and his brothers Curt and Grant, all of whom had previously played together in a number of punk-pop outfits, along with singer Carla Torgerson, a veteran of folk and street singing. The group's lineup proved fluid, although Chris Eckman and Torgerson remained the Walkabouts' driving forces; a later roster including bassist Michael Wells, multi-instrumentalist Glenn Slater, and drummer Terri Moeller did hang together for a number of years.
After issuing a self-titled cassette in 1984, the Walkabouts released the EP 22 Disasters a year later. A full-length LP, Weights and Rivers, was planned for 1987, but the record was never released -- a harbinger of music industry problems to come. Instead, the group offered See Beautiful Rattlesnake Garden in 1988, which not only marked the continued maturity of Eckman and Torgerson's songwriting but also earned the Walkabouts a contract with the fledgling Sub Pop label. The deal resulted in upgraded production values, as evidenced by 1989's Cataract and its follow-up, the next year's six-song EP Rag & Bone, which featured the keyboard work of the newly added Slater. Released in 1991, Scavenger proved to be the last Walkabouts record issued in their native land for some time; however, while the deal with Sub Pop's American division went sour, the label's European division, Glitterhouse, hung on to the Walkabouts, where the band's following had been steadily growing. Between 1993 and 1995, the group issued a staggering seven full-length records in Europe -- three by the full band, a limited-edition live collection, and three more released by the duo of Chris & Carla. Finally, in 1995 the three aforementioned Walkabouts albums -- the double-LP set New West Motel, the all-covers Satisfied Mind, and the more rock-oriented Setting the Woods on Fire -- all appeared domestically. A year later, the band issued two more albums, the all-new Devil's Road (recorded with the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra) and Death Valley Days: Lost Songs and Rarities, 1985-1995, a collection of odds and ends. In November 1996, Wells left the Walkabouts to devote himself to his side project, Pluto Boy; he was replaced by bassist Baker Saunders. Trail of Stars followed in 2000.

( all music.com)

Tracks

Side One :

1. Jack Candy

2. Sundowner

3. Grand Theft Auto

4. Break It Down Gently

Side Two :

1. Your Hope Shines

2. Murdering Stone

3. Sweet Revenge

4. Glad Nation' s Death Song

5. Long Time Here

Side Three :

1. Wondertown (part 1)

2. Drag This River

3. Snake Mountain Blues

4. Findlay' s Motel

5. Unholy Dreams

Side Four :

1. Yesterday Is Here NOT AVAILABLE ON CD(Written by Tom Waits)

2. Like A Hurricane NOT AVAILABLE ON CD(Written by Neil Young)

3. Prisoner Of Texas NOT AVAILABLE ON CD

Label : SUB POP Germany

Format : Vinyl LP

Made in Germany

Released : 1993

Size : 171 Mb

Bitrate 320

Download

Chris Eckman and Carla Torgerson LIVE in Thessaloniki , Greece , at the Mylos Club with Greek Musicians :

Chris and Carla

You can find it here in this Blog

Chris And Carla - Nights Between Stations [ Live In Thessaloniki 1995 ]

Chris And Carla
With The Mylos All Stars
Nights Between Stations
Live In Thessaloniki 1995





Liner Notes
In early May, 1995, Carla and I found ourselves in Thessaloniki (Greece) practicing with a group of Greek musicians we had never met before, on a set of songs that they gad never played before. Our purpose was to prepare a one-night-only club performance at the venerated Mylos, am old mill converted into an arts center, which sits at the industrial edge of the city. The idea for the show had been sprung a few months earlier, when on a visit to Thessaloniki, as a part of the "Life Full of Holes" Tour, Carla and I had been forced to cancel an appearance at another - not-so-venerated - local club. That night had turned out to be a complete disaster - the dilapidated P.A. and the tragi-comic sound crew - combining to make a situation where it was impossible to play a show that would have been worth the price of the ticket. The sound was so bad, that when the promoter came onstage to announce to the waiting crowd, that the show would not be happening, her lone voice could only barely heard above the skrank and squeal of the sound system.

Upon leaving the club, we walked with our friends Emilios and Christos, to a small taverna in the old part part of the city. Quickly we began to dull the disappointment of the evening with a round of Greek liquor. A few rounds later, as we watched and listened to the trio of traditional musicians who hypnotically played on the taverna's unadorned stage, one of us (I can't remember whom) came up with an inspired plan: The next time that Carla and I were in Europe, we would return to Thessaloniki to play a show at the Mylos, backed up by a group of local musicians. This recording, 'Nights Between Stations,' is the result of that drunken idea.

I could rattle on about what a satisfying night the Mylos show turned out to be, and about how much we enjoyed playing with our co-conspirators - The Mylos All Stars - and how impressed we were with the twists and commitment that they gave to the songs. But I am hopeful that this recording conveys those thoughts more powerfully than I could. Carla and I do pass along a mighty thanks to everyone credited on the sleeve, and to all who showed up at the Mylos that evening (especially the veterans of the fiasco of a few months earlier). Some of the Nights Between Stations go by in a blur, but at least for the two of us, the night that is documented here, is one night that holds on strong.

Chris Eckman, Neuenkirchen 1995


Label : Glitterhouse Rec. & Hitch Hyke
Catalog#: GR CD 383 & LIFT 037
Format: CD Album
Country: Germany
Released: 1995
Genre: Rock
Mp3@320 & Covers

Tracks
----------
1. Where The Air Is Cool And Dark
2. Nights Between Stations
3. Prisoner Of Texas
4. The Silent Crossing
5. Storm Crazy
6. Sleep Will Pass Us By
7. Sweet Revenge
8. Storms Are On The Ocean
9. Lungs
10. Velvet Fog
11. Inauguration Day
12. Sand & Gravel

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